Hi, I am Becky Pasman aka Mamma P, the Executive Director. Western Michigan University is my alma mater. I have a BS in Elementary Education and an MA in Middle Level Curriculum and adolescent development. In June of 2007, I retired from teaching eighth grade at Paw Paw Public Schools.

I am now actively involved with the American Camp Association as a conference planner and facilitator, an associate standards visitor, and writer for the ACA Michigan Chapter newsletter, The Woodpile. I?m the mother of two brilliant and talented young adults, both former VBYC staff, and the wife of gifted musician, builder, and cook (staff opinion). My husband and I spend a great deal of time in the off-season traveling.

In my spare time, I also volunteer as a classroom helper for one of my former students, work in the library at a local parochial school, practice yoga, kayaking, or walk with my dog. This summer will be my sixth year at camp. I love watching a summer unfold, hearing campers call out to me on cabin row, seeing the year to year growth in our return campers, listening to the laughter and songs, and most of all just being Mamma P.

Yo! I'm Jason Groth and I'll be your Program Director all summer long! I am majoring in Leisure and Recreation Management st Western Michigan University. I have been a staff member at VBYC since 2005 and I am super excited to be directing the program of the 2009 summer. I am a member in good standing with the Recreation Club, I am a volunteer in Special Olympics (Bowling Division), and recently was a co-presenter at ACA Michigan's Winter Conference along with Becky Pasman.

Alex Moyer here, one of the many friendly faces who will be holding a staff position at the incomparable VBYC this summer. I will be the new Waterfront Director while last year I worked as a lifeguard. Last summer was the first time I ever experienced camp life before and I grew because of it. I believe I am now a better person for having joined the VBYC family. I am a recent graduate of Central Michigan University with a degree in History and Communication. This summer will be the best one yet!

Hi everyone! My name is Larissa Stassek, and I am excited to be coming back for a fourth year on the VBYC staff. This summer I will be teaching archery and managing the store for the second year. I am currently a senior at the University of Michigan, majoring in Russian and East European Studies. I will be graduating this May.

I also work at a day care and will be volunteering with HARC (HIV/AIDS Resource Center) in my free time. I love watching hockey, painting, traveling, and singing karaoke. Last year I studied in Russia, and I also visited Greece, Estonia, and London. The most rewarding part about camp for me is watching the campers as they make new friends and grow through the challenging new experiences that each week brings.

Hi! My name is Melissa Paloucek and I will be teaching Arts & Crafts this summer! This is my second year on staff and I'm very excited to be returning. Last year I worked in the kitchen and before that I was a counselor for four years and a camper for so many years that I've lost count. I attend Illinois State University in Bloomington-Normal. I'm majoring in Special Education and am specializing in Learning and Behavior Disorders.

I love working with kids and plan on helping them throughout my life. In the past I have been an assistant teacher for dance classes, coached an elementary cheerleading team, ran my own cheerleading camp, and was a junior aide for younger Girl Scout troops, just to name a few. When I'm not working with kids I love to perform in musicals. I also enjoy reading, watching the food network, and hanging out with my friends. This will be my 11th year coming to VBYC and I don't plan on stopping anytime soon. This camp has given me so much and I hope that every camper takes away something great from this camp that offers so much. I'm so excited for this summer to begin and I can't wait to see all the campers, both old and new.

Hey there! My name is Erica Johnson. I hale from the great state of Georgia. I am currently a freshman at the University of Georgia and I am studying math education. This summer I am going to be teaching canoeing along with Sara. It will be my fifth year out at camp and my second summer on staff. Last year I worked in the kitchen as a kitchen boy. Camp means a lot to me and always will. My favorite part of camp is definitely the campers. I will never grow tired of the smiles on their faces from day to day. In my free time I enjoy cooking, volunteering, swimming, and spending time with my family and friends. I look forward to seeing all of you this summer!

Hello, my name is Betsy Antisdale and I am returning for my 7th summer at VBYC, 5th as head cook. I am a domestic engineer and quilter. My soon to be 5 year old daughter, Ema, is also looking forward to camp. She can not wait to go swimming in the lake. I love breakfast at camp, cool temps, a warm kitchen, and 100 smiling hungry faces on the other side of the kitchen window. This summer I look forward to cooking up some good food and warm memories.

Hey! My name is Kyle McKelvey and I will be one of the great Kitchen Girls (yes, I know I'm really a boy) this summer. This is my first year on staff at VBYC and I am really looking forward to it. I have been going to camp since I was eight and have been a counselor/staff in training (SIT) for the past few years. I am currently a senior at St. Patrick High School in Chicago, and will be attending Illinois State University in the fall. At my school I play volleyball, am in the Spanish club, Liturgy team, and Letterman's club. I love watching sports, playing them, reading, talking, and hanging out with friends. My favorite thing about camp is watching kids have the same experiences that I had as a camper and enjoying them just as much as I did. I can't wait for a great summer out at VBYC!

Hello my names is Cody Preston and I’m a first year staff member working as kitchen boy this summer. This will be my tenth summer at camp. I’ve been going to VBYC since I was 8years old and I’ve spent the last two summers counseling at VBYC. I’m currently a junior at Mendota High School in Illinois and I hope to study sports and I plan on going on to college and studying sports medicine in two years. I love being outdoors and playing sports especially soccer. I like to spend my days reading, working out, hiking, camping ,and swimming. I come from a family of five kids and I have lots of younger cousins so I naturally enjoy being around kids. I really can’t wait to spend my summer working at VBYC.

Hey : ) my name is Catherine Rector and this summer I will be one of the fabulous kitchen girls cooking all the yummy food for the campers! I am currently attending Highland Park High School, but in the fall, I will be attending Illinois State University to study Special Education. Throughout my life I have always loved working with kids, and so I can't imagine anywhere else I would want to spend my time. I have done everything from being a camper, a counselor, to being a staff in training (SIT).

In previous years, I have also been an assistant religious ed. teacher at my church and an assistant tae kwon do instructor during the years I studied martial arts. My other hobbies include reading, cooking, watching movies, photography, listening to music, and participating in community service/volunteering. My favorite part of VBYC is being able to hear the campers' laughter floating all throughout camp. No matter where I am, I can always hear children laughing without fail. Their smiles and laughter are what make camp what it is. Is it summer yet? : )

Hello, my name is Frannie Lorenzi and I am a first year staff member and a lifeguard this summer! I have been attending VBYC since I was eight and have been a counselor or a volunteer staff member for the past five years. For the past few years I have been teaching swim lessons and life guarding in the Chicago area.

I currently attend Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and am Majoring in Bio-Medical Science with a minor in International Policy. I enjoy yoga, watching movies, dancing, and reading! Within the next year or so, I have plans to study abroad in South Africa and possibly Washington D.C. What I love the most about camp is giving the campers the experiences that I had when I was a camper, experiences that made me the person that I am today! I can?t wait for this summer and am looking forward to seeing you out at camp!

Hey!! My name is Sara Salefske. I am going to be one of the canoeing instructors this summer and I am very pumped! This is my second year on staff. I have counseled out at camp for four years and staffed last summer as a lifeguard. Currently, I am attending school at Central Michigan University and I am majoring in math education, and double minoring in chemistry and mid-level education. I can't wait to have my own classroom! One of my favorite things to do is gymnastics, which I also wish to coach when I am older. While in high school, I helped to coach the middle school cheerleading team, and did some one-on-one lessons with some of the girls. I also interned in a seventh grade math classroom during my senior year.

I love being around kids! I also like music, which is very important to me, being around my friends and family, reading, and watching movies. One of my favorite things about camp is having the ability to stand and watch the kids during activities and to see them smile, laugh and have fun. That is something that always brightens my day, and when the campers having fun like that, I know I've given back to VBYC, which has helped me make so many great memories and to grow so much as a person. =]]

Hi I'm Tim Pituch and I will be one of your lifeguards out at camp this year. I am a freshman at the University of Michigan and I absolutely LOVE camp. I've been coming here for over nine years now and have done every thing from camping to counseling to sitting (staff in training for those of you who dont know all the lingo). In high school I swam and played water polo, so water sports have always been a passion of mine. I am even playing co-ed inner tube water polo at Michigan! Besides this I love to listen to music, play the guitar, and shoot hoops. This will be my fourth year as a lifeguard and I have taught swimming lessons at my local pool. I am really looking forward to meeting all of you this summer at quite possibly the greatest place in the world. VBYC!!!

Hi everyone! I'm Kate McKelvey and this will be my second summer on staff at VBYC. This year I will be doing low ropes with Connor and I am very excited about this new opportunity. Working with kids has always been a passion of mine. I used to coach youth volleyball and softball, and last year I worked at an orphanage. I am currently a freshman at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. At U of I, I am a part of International Impact, Recreational Volleyball, Sunday Afternoon Football Potluck, Illini Pride, and next year I will be serving as a Resident Advisor. I love to travel, work with kids and be at camp. I'm really looking forward to another summer out at camp and I hope all of you are excited too!c

Howdy! My name is Connor Sutton and I have the pleasure of teaching low ropes with Kate McKelvey this summer! This is my first summer on staff and I can't wait! VBYC has been my home from the age of seven and I have been a counselor/SIT the past four years. I am a senior at Lakeland High School in White Lake, MI, out towards Detroit. At Lakeland, I am the class president and have been very involved in the leadership classes.

I also am very involved with the YMCA Youth in Government program, where I helped represent the state of Michigan at a giant national mock legislature. I will be attending Aquinas College in Grand Rapids this fall, where I will be studying political science and economics as well as playing lacrosse. Music is really important to me and I enjoy spending my down time playing guitar and banjo with my friends and family. I loved everything about VBYC as a camper and can't wait to give back to this place which has already given so much to me!

Hi my name is Chad McDonald and I will be teaching Nature at VBYC this year. This is my first year at the camp and I am very excited to share my knowledge with the campers. I am a United States Army Sergeant and will be honorably discharged this June just before camp training begins. I have served 5 years in the Army from 2004 until 2009 in the 101st Airborne Division-Screaming Eagles. I am currently writing this from Paktika province, Afghanistan, near the Pakistan border.

During my time in the Army I've served as a Combat Infantry Team leader in both Operation Iraqi Freedom, from Nov 05-Nov of 06, in Baghdad, Iraq, and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, from March 08 until March 09. I've also attended the Army's Warrior's Leader Course and Air Assault School. I will be attending Michigan State University this fall. In my free time I enjoy running Marathons and playing the guitar! As this is my first year at the camp, I hope to share my leadership experience, knowledge of nature with the kids, and just make sure we have lots of fun.

Since 2000, I, Margaret Thar Foster, have been the Summer Office Manager for VBYC. My first experience at VBYC was as a camper. My children have been campers and now my grandsons are campers. With a Masters from MSU in Ag Extension & Adult Education, I have been a teacher, 4-H International Program Director at MSU, and on the Staff of the Dyslexia Resource Center. Retired except for my summers at camp, living in Sun City Center, Fl and Chapel Hill, NC. I love traveling, reading, knitting and working with the Stephens Ministry in my church. Working with the VBYC staff, enjoying the VBYC campers and living at VBYC make my summer day!

Hello! My name is Hayley Frey, and I will be teaching riflery this summer at VBYC. This is my second year on staff, but I have been coming to camp in all capacities (camper, counselor, etc.) for 11 years. Currently, I am a sophomore at Michigan State University where I am majoring in vocal music education. Back in high school I was very involved in student government programs, musicals, choir, and the Show Choir, which ran a workshop for younger students each year. I am also a member of the Michigan State Rifle Team and have been shooting competitively for two years. I love music in all forms, Lake Michigan, swimming, running, dancing, and laughing. Each year I am drawn back to camp by the bonds that are created; between campers and also between staff members. The relationships formed in the spirit of camp and pure and lasting.

Ay! I'm Anna Rydecki and I will be VBYC's 2009 staff's song, dance, and drama instructor! This will be my second year back on staff, moving up from being a kitchen girl in the summer of 2008 to S/D/D instructor. My family and friends and I grew up going to VBYC so it was a dream for me to finally be a part of staff. I counseled for one year and was a camper for a few years some years before that. I also worked at a youth center in South Haven for the past three years where I also taught drama and dance twice a week. I was also a captain of the dance team The Crew for three years while in high school and have been in choir and in musicals since I was a little girl. I graduated from South Haven High School in 2008 and moved to California to see about pursuing my dreams of becoming an actress. So I can't wait to provide campers with memories worth a lifetime all summer long!

Hello, my name is Andrew Scheid and I am the sports instructor for 2009. I have been a camper, counselor, SIT, and volunteer staff member more times than I can count- and after a long hiatus, will be on staff full time for the first time. I graduated from Grand Valley State University with a degree in Physical Education, and am returning this fall to finish my Secondary Social Studies teaching certification. I coach football and basketball and am always doing something to keep me active. My other hobbies include reading, cooking, being outdoors, and traveling. I cannot wait for my first full summer out at camp.

Hey everyone! For those that don't know who I am, my name is Johnny Cochran and I will be this summer's new Volunteer Coordinator! This is a totally new position that I am stoked about! I will be overseeing the all of the great individuals that make up our teams of counselors, SIT's and any volunteer staff that will help make this summer the best one yet! I have been coming to camp since I was 7 years old, counseled for 5 years and staffed for 3, with the last two summers as your Waterfront Director. I can't wait for this summer to get here, hurry up already!!!